


Life Won't Break Me

by crossword



Series: Let their Wings Unfold [5]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: Anal Sex, M/M, Oral Sex, Parenthood, Pillow Talk, Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-31
Updated: 2019-09-03
Packaged: 2020-07-28 01:27:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,064
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20055784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crossword/pseuds/crossword
Summary: "I need a break," Nico announced abruptly. "I need sleep, I need adult interaction, I need to get out of here, and I need some decent sex. Call Reyna, Percy, whoever has time, and get her out of here before I send her back to the Underworld."Will nodded, wisely not commenting.





	1. The Crisis

**Author's Note:**

> "And maybe you can do a little smut . I mean with a baby life is going to get hectic for solangelo , so they won't get much time for everything so Reyna babysits daisy and smut happens ."
> 
> Yes, anonymous poster known as Parvathy. I can do that.

**Nico **

Daisy screamed. Nico wanted to scream back. But then the neighbors would complain again. Though to be fair, they would probably complain anyway. It was four o'clock in the morning and his sister (when she was like this, it somehow felt easier to think of her as his sister) was having one of her phases where she just seemed to scream for the Dad of it. He'd changed her (clean) diaper twice, had tried to feed her both a bottle and apple sauce (Will said she was old enough to start trying solids), both of which she'd vehemently rejected, and spent half an hour circling the living room, rocking her back and forth while sing-songing her favorite ditty (Hush Little Baby, a song the son of Hades now hated on principle). All to no avail. 

Well, he'd tried the Percy and Hazel method of spoiling her. Time to try the Frank and Annabeth method of not being a pushover. Resolutely he marched over to the crib and plunked her down, still screaming for all she was worth, then steeled himself and walked out of the room. Daisy continued to test her lung capacity for several heart (and ear) rending minutes. Then finally, finally, the sound tapered off into soft snuffles. Nico gingerly let go of the pillow he'd been strangling, reveling in the relative silence. Careful not to make a noise that would give away his presence to the harpy in the bedroom, he stretched out on the couch, pulling one of the many, many baby blankets they'd been gifted over himself as best as he could. If he could just get an hour, a single hour of sleep before Will came home from his night shift, he'd –

The door slammed and Nico jerked bolt upright, reaching for the dagger that was no longer taped to the bottom of the coffee table since they'd babyproofed the apartment.

"Sorry about that," Will whisper-yelled. "Slow night at the hospital, they sent me home early. Why are you out here?"

Daisy chose this moment to give a few loud hiccups and then pick up her screaming right where she'd left off just a few minutes ago.

"Oh." Will only needed a single glance at his husband's face to put two and two together. "Why don't I get her."

"No, don't, she only wants atte – "

But Will was already in the bedroom. "You crying, baby girl, aw, what's the matter. Tell daddy what's the matter. You need your diaper changed, hm sweetie? You want a bottle, aw, you just want your favorite song, am I right baby? Here, daddy's going to cuddle you."

Daisy continued to scream. Nico groaned and let himself fall back on the couch.

Three hours later, once he'd convinced his husband to stop indulging his daughter's temper tantrum (referring to her as Will's child also helped) and come cuddle papa instead, Nico woke up feeling barely refreshed, but no longer in the mood for murder. Because he was still in kind of tired though, he shoved Will off him rather indelicately, waking him in the process. By the time the son of Apollo stumbled into the kitchen, still blinking sleep out of his eyes, Nico had heated the milk and shoved the end of the bottle into their daughter's mouth. She suckled happily, the only one of the three not visibly sleep-deprived.

"I need a break," Nico announced abruptly. "I need sleep, I need adult interaction, I need to get out of here, and I need some decent sex. Call Reyna, Percy, whoever has time, and get her out of here before I send her back to the Underworld."

Will nodded, wisely not commenting.

"Don't drink any coffee, I'll get Piper to pick her up, she mentioned she wanted some time with her."

"Piper, really? You remember what happened when she watched Sherry last week."

"I mean, personally, I thought she looked pretty cute with pierced ears, I don't get why Frank had me close the holes."

"She's three, Will!"

"Well Hazel's too preggo to watch Daisy, Frank's got exams and Percy's still getting used to Bailey on top of the twins. He's good, but even he can't take care of two toddlers and two newborns at the same time. Do you want sex or not?"

"Fine. But if we get our baby back with a mohawk, I blame you."

"I'll ask Reyna to drop in on them, they can spend some quality time together that way."

"They're gonna know you're setting them up!" Nico called as he headed to the bathroom to get a shower before wrangling some real sleep.


	2. The Decent Sex

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Fire up the smut." -- The Todd, Scrubs

**Will**

Once Piper had enthusiastically picked up Daisy and he'd cleaned up the kitchen and living room as well as possible (he was also looking forward to decent sex), the son of Apollo was finally able to shower, washing away the night's phlegm and vomit, before crawling into bed with his husband. The discovery that the man of his dreams hadn't bothered to put on any clothes between the shower and the bed was almost enough to wake him up again. Almost. Instead, he kicked off his own boxers and plastered himself to Nico's back, drifting into the arms of Morpheus.

When he awoke quite a few hours later, refreshed and ready for decent sex, he was pleased to discover Nico still asleep beside him, his lids barely flickering in a way Will knew, from years of watching him, indicated he was about to wake up. Settling comfortably back into the pillows, he carded a lazy hand through his husband's dark hair. The son of Hades let out a hum, shifting to nuzzle Will's side.

"Hey babe." He gently massaged the back of Nico's neck. "Wake up. Come on. Decent sex, remember?"

Nico's eyelids fluttered, tickling Will's hip, and his husband groaned, rolling onto his back to glare up at him.

"Fine. Get down here."

Will gladly obliged, sliding down the headboard to deliver a long, slow kiss.

Well, sort of.

"Ugh. Morning breath," he complained, pulling back.

"Well if you'd just let me brush –" Nico attempted to get up, but Will wrapped an arm around his waist and pulled him back down.

"No," he whined, pressing kisses to his husband's neck and shoulder. "Decent sex, remember?" He nipped at the skin right between Nico's jaw and neck, where he knew he was sensitive, then sucked it into his mouth. Nico all but collapsed under him.

"Umpf. You'd think I've been neglecting you," the son of Hades complained.

"I miss you. Don't you miss me?" Will wheedled.

His husband froze under him for a second, which really should have tipped him off, but suddenly, the son of Apollo found himself being flipped onto his back, Nico holding him down, a predatory look on his face.

"I did, actually," he grinned, licking a stripe from Will's left nipple all the way up to his neck. The healer groaned and arched his back, but Nico pushed him back down.

"Let me," he murmured, reaching down to take Will's by now aching length in hand. The son of Apollo groaned again as his husband started running his hand up and down, flicking the bundle of nerves right beneath his head skillfully. It had been a while for both of them. and Will was fit to burst when Nico abruptly let go, causing him to whine disappointedly.

"Not yet, not yet," Nico grinned, before plunging down and engulfing Will's length in his mouth. It took the healer everything he had not to come right then and there from the perfect, wet heat. His husband pulled off with a pop, grinning.

"You all right there, babe?"

Will growled and pushed his hand into Nico's hair, urging him down again. The son of Hades complied, giving the head of his cock a few kitten licks before taking it back in his mouth. When he sucked on the head, Will moaned and pulled on his hair until Nico hollowed his cheeks and took him in completely.

"Baby, I'm going to c--"

Suddenly, Nico's mouth has gone, leaving his dick cold where the spit came in contact with the air, and a vice-like grip encircled its base.

"Not yet," his husband cautioned, grinning devilishly. "You don't want miss out on the special act, do you?"

Will groaned in frustration, but there was a bubbly feeling of anticipation in his stomach. They didn't often do anal, because while the healer could use his powers to prevent any longterm health issues, neither of them could really afford to go around limping, what with their jobs/child-rearing/monster-slaying activities.

Pulling himself together, he raised himself on his elbows to get a good look at his husband. 

"You sure?"

Nico nodded.

"Fuck me," he ordered commandingly.

Will surged forward, frustration forgotten, to kiss the son of Hades, bad breath be damned.

As they breathlessly made out, Will felt Nico pull one of his hands off his body to push a bottle of lube into it. He gladly accepted the item, pushing his boyfriend over, reverting to their previous position. Ducking down, he pressed a kiss to Nico's pucker. His husband, who hadn't been expecting it, gave a yelp, almost kicking the healer in the head before Will grabbed his leg. 

"Stay down," he ordered cheekily before ducking down again to probe insistently at his husband's hole with his tongue, until finally it made some headway. Popping the cap off the lube, he slathered his fingers liberally in the stuff, before using them to aid his progress. Once he'd managed to work two in (a little helping hand of healing magic never hurt), he started feeling around with more purpose. Nico tensed, having figured out what Will was doing, then shouted out when he succeeded. Honestly, Will lived for this. Nico, stretched out on his fingers, groaning and panting, and when he twisted his fingers again, having him jerk like a puppet.

"Come on, Will," the son of Hades moaned, halfheartedly kicking out with his leg again. "Put it in, I'm not going to last. It's been too long, baby."

"One more, angel," the healer cautioned, pressing a soothing kiss to the inside of said leg. "I don't want to hurt you."

Nico started rolling his eyes, but the son of Apollo flicked his fingers against that little lump he'd become so intimate with again, and now his husband's eyes were rolling for a completely different reason. Once he was distracted again, Will quickly worked in another finger, and then a fourth for good measure. It had been a while, after all. Will could tell Nico was realizing it too. He's quieted, and his erection flagged a little, so the healer quickly found his prostate again, bringing him back to the edge before withdrawing his fingers, and now Nico was moaning in earnest.

"Come on, Will, baby," he begged. "Want you. Need you to fill me, please baby."

Spurred on by Nico's begging, Will hardly felt the coolness of the lube he hastily smeared against his dick before lining himself up with his husband and slowly pushing in. Nico gripped his arms as he did, and with his own arms wrapped around him, the healer could feel clear as crystal when the pain threatened to overwhelm the pleasure his love was feeling, giving him time to adjust. Even if sometimes Nico objected. Pain had always been one of their sensitive points when it came to sex. In the early days, Will had been able to claim he was afraid Nico was punishing himself through him, using pain and humiliation as outlets for his as of yet unresolved issues. It had taken him a while to admit, to both of them, that he simply hated it. He hated inflicting pain, especially on those he loved. Especially Nico. Once they'd had that conversation, Nico had backed off. But he still got impatient sometimes.

**Nico**

Finally, finally, Will was completely seated in him, and the son of Hades relished the mix of pain and pleasure. Thanks to some handy yoga classes from the Aphrodite kids, he'd gotten better at managing pain over the years, especially after that one conversation where Will had opened up to him about why he was such a sap in bed. It had been sweet, but seriously. Without Nico's intervention, they'd never make it further than blowjobs.

And how Nico would have missed this. Being this close, this connected to the one he loved, like they were a single being. Through the haze of contentment that was washing over him, he managed to reach out an arm and pull his husband closer. Will obliged, resting his arms on either side of Nico's head so they could stare into each other's eyes and share their breaths (all thoughts of toothpaste forgotten), as Will finally rocked his hips against Nico's, following the rhythm as old as time. Lacing his fingers in his blond curls, Nico brought him down for a breathless, graceless kiss, all spit and teeth and passion as they moaned each other's names. It didn't last much time – they'd both been on edge too long for anything else – until Nico felt the head of Will's dick brush up against _there_, again, and again, until he was almost sobbing in anticipation, and then burst, painting Will's stomach in a long, drawn-out moan. Will wasn't far behind, as in his semi-lucidity, Nico felt himself tense around his husband, oversensitive to every inch of Will pressed inside him, and he could feel him pulse, and then release, and there was a wet, full feeling soothing his frayed nerves. With a sigh, he went boneless, and the sudden weight on his chest confirmed that Will had just done the same.

"Decent enough?" he asked.

Will nodded wordlessly against his chest.


	3. Adult Conversation

**Nico**

They stayed like that for a long while, laying motionless together, Will's flaccid length still inside him and Nico's cum smeared against their stomachs. Finally, when discomfort overtook sleepiness, Will pushed himself up on his elbows and carefully pulled out of him. The movement jarred the son of Hades out of a daze, and he gave an involuntary whimper. The healer quickly soothed him with a kiss to the temple, rubbing his side gently.

"Hang in there, be right back," he whispered. Nico distantly heard the sound of running water from the general direction of the bathroom, and before he knew it, Will was back, gently running a warm, wet cloth over his stomach and between his legs. When the son of Hades hissed at the latter, the son of Apollo sighed, putting down the washcloth.

"I told you, you idiot. Tell me when it stops hurting."

He threw one of Nico's legs over his shoulder (which hurt and was definitely unnecessary in the son of Hades' opinion), reaching down to rest his hand against his lower back and ass. Soon the wonderful feeling of Will's healing powers seeped through him, calming the ache inside him.

"You're getting better at directing your powers without hymns," he noted groggily. Will shrugged, causing Nico to get lifted halfway off the bed, which he immediately protested. His husband grinned at him, pressing a kiss to his leg before releasing it, and spreading out next to him. Nico grabbed a sheet and pulled it over their legs, keeping them warm in the seasonably chilly April air.

"The Romans aren't big fans of singing," the son of Apollo admitted. "Apparently it's not very military-like."

Despite the mock salute Will gave him, Nico could tell it was genuinely bothering him. He frowned.

"Do I need to scare somebody?" he asked, running a hand over Will's cheek. His husband pretended to bite at it.

"Naw. I've been thinking of talking to one of my professors about doing a class on it. You know, The Ancient Art of Greek Medicine, in all caps."

"That's awesome, you’re already the number two expert on that after Chiron. You totally should do it."

Will visibly hesitated, rolling onto his back.

"I'm not sure," he admitted.

Nico frowned, pushing himself up on his elbow.

"Why?"

"It would take... a lot of time. Not just the classes, but preparing them, and the testing and admin. Plus, with the hospital, I'd pretty much never be here for you and Daisy."

The son of Hades pushed himself closer, wrapping his arms around Will's neck. The son of Apollo sighed, pulling him closer by the waist.

"You know I can handle her. Today was just... a bit much. But I could just call Percy. Even though he's busy with baby Bailey right now."

Will huffed. "Yeah, I ran into him on a walk at eleven last night on my way to work, trying to get the kid some rest away from the twins. He still hasn't decided which pronouns he wants to use until Bailey is old enough to decide for... themself."

"Figures Neptune would have an intersex kid, doesn't it."

"Yep. Everyone at the hospital is super psyched about it, thanks to multiple people's big mouths. I tried explaining to them that it's literally more common than red hair, but apparently no one cares."

"I mean, it's a small hospital, and they mostly treat sword wounds. I'm not exactly surprised. And it's better than being excited about those Janus Siamese twins."

"Yeah, that case really sucked, having to figure out whether it was safer to separate them right away, or wait till they could decide, or what. But this is actually related to what I mean."

Nico raised an eyebrow.

"I have to admit, now I'm curious. How are Daisy and I related to the Siamese Janus twins?"

Will ran a hand through his hair in frustration.

"I don't want to be surgically separated from my family by the hospital, okay? I don't want to be one of those dads whose kid only sees them once a week, or less. I want Daisy to grow up with memories of me that don't just include her begging me not to go. I want to be an actual parent, not some person who drops by once in a while between gigs and then twenty years later wonders why their kid never calls."

Nico carefully ran a nail down his husband’s arm, picking at the golden hair.

"Talk to your mom recently?"

"No, why?"

Nico stayed silent. Will rolled on his back.

"Dammit, I keep forgetting you took that Psych class that one time."

Nico smothered a laugh.

"Look, Will, you're not your mom. Daisy knows who you are. She knows you love her, and she knows you're a great singer. And she's going to keep knowing. Because I will kick your ass if you leave me alone with her for more than twenty-four hours, ever." He mock shuddered. "Think of the teenage years."

Will sighed, kissing him softly. “Thanks, love. But it would still mean a lot of work, a lot of time away from you and Daisy, time I’m never going to get back.”

Nico sat up, the sheets pooling around his waist.

“Look, Will. My mom – she loved me and Bianca more than anything. I know that. But that didn’t mean she gave up her life for us. She wanted us to live, and she showed us how by example. I think that’s why she never let Hades take us all to the Underworld. That wasn’t living.” He paused. “I think she would’ve liked your mom.”

Will sat up as well.

“You don’t really talk about her,” he murmured.

“I don’t really remember her. I – I think about what I know, though. I analyze it, try to figure out what she was like. Why she did the things she did. What she would do if she were here now, with me, and you, and Daisy. It helps me feel closer to her sometimes.”

His husband cradled his face, kissing him with infinite gentleness.

“Fine, I’ll call my mom. But beware, she’s probably going to try to talk us into letting her move permanently into Daisy’s room.

Nico snorted. “Well, it would help, there’s no denying that.” A thought suddenly crossed his mind.

“Hey, Will?”

His husband hummed, looking back up from where he’d settled against the pillows.

“Your mom’s a musician, right? How much does she know about Greek healing hymns?”


	4. Human Interaction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Sorry for the wait, this one was hard to write for some reason. Also, many thanks to rinney333 for pointing out that I had already married these two in the previous segment. So if you spot the word "fiancé" anywhere, let me know so I can retcon it. Enjoy!

**Will**

“This is a terrible idea,” Will muttered, watching his mother unload the last few boxes from her cab. Daisy, nestled comfortably in his arms, gurgled in agreement.

“Shut up, it’s my idea,” Nico muttered back. “Anyway, she’s here now.”

Will shook his head. “Yes, she is.”

Naomi Solace came up to them sporting her usual sunny smile and a box of pink fluffy… things.

“Here, let me take that for you, ma’am,” Nico immediately offered. Will’s mother gave a shriek loud enough to startle Daisy. And a few birds on nearby trees. And probably a few police officers over in San Francisco. His mom had a voice, there was no arguing with that.

“Ma’am! Ma’am! Nico, darling, you are married to my son and you are raising my granddaughter. I think we’re a little past “ma’am”.” She pushed the boxes into his arms and promptly gave him a hug.

“Uhm, yes ma’am,” the son of Hades blushed.

“We’ll work on it,” Naomi promised, patting his cheek. “Now let me hold my little angel, aw, come here sweetheart.” She scooped Daisy out of Will’s arms and started kissing her cheeks repeatedly until his daughter squirmed. Her grandmother just laughed, settling her more comfortably on her arm.

“Now come along, Will, I’ve got presents,” she smiled, patting his cheek like when he was younger and she’d bring him things from her tours.

The son of Apollo mostly counted it as a blessing that when his mother had made the spur of the moment decision to move to New Rome, the closest place for rent she’d been able to get was a whole five minutes’ walk away from his and Nico’s. He didn’t think he’d be able to stand having her any closer. But he couldn’t deny that it was a really nice apartment she’d found, and most importantly, it was on the ground floor and had a tiny garden attached. He’d been trying hard to expose Daisy to dirt and plants more to build up her immune system, but it was difficult when living on the third floor with a partner who routinely killed potted plants just by looking at them. His mother’s self-invitation to New Rome would be good for Daisy, at least.

When they entered the small apartment, Will’s eyes were, as usual, immediately drawn to Nico, who looked sinfully good in a black tank top and ripped, dirty jeans, all sweaty and gleaming from carrying boxes in the early summer heat. His husband looked a little uncomfortable among the piles of psychedelic pillows, rugs and other soft things, even though their own apartment had slowly started to take on a similar look. Their daughter seemed to express a marked preference for colorful things. Naomi handed Daisy off to him, smiling as she edged by and unstacked a pile of boxes to get to the suitcase at the bottom.

“Now here we go,” she mumbled to herself, riffling through its content. “Have a seat, kids,” she added, waving a hand towards the turquoise couch. Will immediately bounded forward to remove the bags from it so Nico could sit down with their daughter in his lap, before settling next to them. Daisy looked up enquiringly at him with her big brown eyes and he smiled, offering her his fingers to play with. She’d recently learned to sit on her own, which Will was super proud of, even though his chest twinged at how fast she was growing.

“Got them!” Startled, Daisy looked up as her grandmother approached, something hidden behind her back.

“Tada!” Naomi suddenly pulled a big yellow stuffed bird out from behind her back. Daisy jumped and immediately started bawling.

“Oh dear,” Will’s mother seemed to wilt.

“It’s fine,” Nico reassured her, letting their daughter bury her face in his shirt. (He was getting hotter by the second, Will found.) “She’s just tired, this is an exciting day for her. Lots going on.”

Naomi tried to smile again. “Of course.”

When Nico shot him a dirty look over Daisy’s soft curls, Will reluctantly stood, letting his mother take his place on the couch.

“Here, she’ll be fine. She loves those big bright soft things. Just, maybe no more surprises?”

His mother sat down, the stuffed animal on her lap. “I remember you told me so on the phone.”

Will raised an eyebrow. His mother wasn’t big on remembering things, as far as he remembered. He’d spent many a birthday distracted by his own grandma while his grandpa yelled into the phone in the background.

Luckily, Daisy’s crying fit subsided after a few moments, when she peeked out from Nico’s chest at her grandmother, who’d finally figured out how to lower the volume.

“Hey baby,” she cooed softly, slowly holding out the toy. “You wanna look at it?”

His little girl seemed to deliberate before sticking out a hand and reaching for the stuffed animal, eventually hugging it to her chest as well as she could. It was almost as big as she was. The three adults collectively awed when she hid her face in her father’s shirt again.

“I think I should take her home for her nap,” Nico commented, rubbing her back.

“I can take – “

“No, I’ll do it,” Nico interrupted him. “You two catch up. I’ll see you back at the apartment later, babe.” His husband gave him another look when he leaned in for a quick kiss.

“Fine,” the son of Apollo mumbled, ducking down to press his lips to Daisy’s head. Nico took the opportunity to grab the front of his shirt and pull him closer.

“I’ll make it up to you,” he breathed into Will’s ear, and the healer had to resist a full-body shudder at the warm breath brushing over the shell of his ear.

“So…”

“I can make some tea?” His mother twisted her hands together, clearly uncomfortable.

“Sure,” Will answered awkwardly. Without Nico and Daisy acting as a buffer, everything suddenly seemed so stilted.

“If I could just remember where I put it…” Naomi looked around the room at the many packed boxes. “I had this lovely assam I got in India when I was there on a spiritual retreat last year, such a lovely country –“

“Mom,” Will interrupted. “It’s fine.” He paused. “I didn’t know you went to India.”

Naomi smiled ruefully. “No. We haven’t kept up much, you and I, have we. I suppose that’s on me.”

Will shook his head. “No, mom, don’t think that. I’ve been pretty lousy at keeping in contact myself, with the hospital, and Daisy – ”

His mother silenced him with a gesture. “Please, Will. Let’s not pretend. You always kept in contact with me. Even during that dreadful time when communications were shut down with your camp, and you had to get that lovely woman Sally to track me down. It’s me that’s failed you.” She sighed, stepping to the window. “I haven’t been a very good mother.”

“Mom – “

“I finally realized it when Bill and the girls left. That’s why I went to India. I needed to recenter. To get away.” She looked down at her hands. “I’m sorry it took me so long to realize it, baby.”

Will wasn’t sure what to say.

“Bill left?”

Naomi smiled ruefully. “Yeah. He finally had enough. Your sisters too. And I can’t blame them. The months-long tours that always seemed to get longer. The spontaneous moves, and trips. Never knowing if I’d be there the next morning.”

“I did wonder why you were able to move here so fast.”

Her smile was brittle. “It’s not easy settling down to a normal life after meeting a god.” She turned away from the window.

“But I’m here now. And I want to make things better between us, Will. Here.” She went back over to the suitcase with the gifts and pulled out a sheath of papers, handing them to him. The healer scanned them wordlessly. Music notes immediately jumped out at him, annotations, comments in the margins. “I did some preliminary research, compiled a list of all known ancient Greek healing hymns still known in the mortal world. It wasn’t much at first, but then I contacted your brother Austin’s mother Latricia at Oberlin. Lovely woman. He apparently sent her quite a few transcriptions over the years, which really sped things up. She even offered to bring up some equipment for recordings next time she’s up here to visit her son.”

Will leafed through the papers. Sure enough, that was Austin’s handwriting, along with an elegant scrawl that he recognized from some of the letters his brother had gotten over the years.

“Mom, this is incredible.”

Naomi shrugged. “It’s a start. Latricia warned me that if we want to turn this into a full blown college course, we’ll need more than a few songs. But she’s offered to join us once the summer session starts, so we’ll be able to work on it together.”

“Mom… I don’t know what to say. When Nico suggested I contact you about this project, I was just thinking maybe you could help write some of it down. But this…”

His mother reached up to put a hand on the back of his neck.

“Would I have deprived myself of the chance to finally get to know the wonderful young man my son has become?”

His throat suddenly tight, Will slowly put down the pile of papers.

“Oh baby,” Naomi cooed, her arms wrapping around his shoulders. Will hugged her back, hiding his face in her neck.

“Thanks, mom,” he whispered.


	5. Garden Party

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's a wrap, people. Currently working on a fic in an alternate universe, but if you have a pressing need for more in this one, let me know!

**Austin**

The son of Apollo narrowed his eyes.

“What do you think, Dee? Is Uncle Austin being crazy?”

Daisy just looked at him, shoving her thumb into her mouth. Austin smiled and hiked her up more securely in his arms before glaring across the small yard again, where his mom and Will’s mother were chatting and laughing around coffee and cake. Scattered around the rest of Ms Solace’s yard were some of the other greek demigods and their offspring, enjoying the end of the school year at Naomi’s little garden party. Piper, Reyna and Kayla were talking about something involving the dagger Piper was wielding in one corner. Sally and Estelle were chasing the Jackson-Chase twins around while Paul rocked baby Bailey and chatted with Annabeth’s father. The parents themselves were fast asleep in two lawn chairs. Lou Ellen was helping Sherry create illusions for the other kids while Frank and Hazel tried to talk their son Justin into turning back from a rabbit into a human. His brother himself, however, was nowhere to be seen. When Austin had arrived and promptly demanded to hold his niece, Will had handed her over before disappearing into another room, dragging Nico behind him by the wrist. That had been half an hour ago. Austin hadn’t wanted to know back in Camp Half-Blood, and he didn’t want to know now.

But back to the subject at hand. Stalking across the yard, he pulled up a chair at the table with the two mothers.

“Oh, sweetheart, come here,” Latricia immediately cooed, taking Daisy out of his arms and plunking her down on her lap. She laughed when the daughter of Hades reached out to grab at the cowry necklace she was wearing. “Such a precious thing.”

“Isn’t she?” Naomi agreed, beaming. “I’m so happy I decided to stay in New Rome, so I can see her grow up. I never had enough time to see Will when he was her age.”

Latricia nodded. “It must have been difficult, touring with a young child. Though my colleagues in the contemporary music section thank you for doing so.”

Naomi’s face lit up. “Do they really?”

“Of course. In fact, if I go back there, I’d love for you to accompany me, I’m sure everyone would be extatic to meet you.”

Austin felt his eyes narrow again. “_If _you go back?”

His mother waved a hand at him. “Well, you know it’s been some time since my last sabbatical, dear, and this project on ancient greek healing hymns has piqued my interest. Not to mention the area has its attractions.” He caught the way she smiled across the table at Will’s mom, who beamed back. Austin was going to kill Will.

“So anyway, what was the name of this young lady you’re seeing? Adrienne, Will said her name was?” 

His brother was a dead man.

“Yeah, Addie. She’s a trauma surgeon at the hospital.”

Latricia nodded approvingly. “Sounds like she’ll be good for you. Disciplined. I like it. Next time, bring her.”

Austin was going to murder him, hide his corpse, marry his husband, adopt his daughter and erase his existence from the annals of History.

“Well, we haven’t really discussed what our relationship was going to… ”

His mother snorted.

“Like father like son, isn’t it, Naomi?” The other woman nodded emphatically.

  
“Why can’t you take example on your brother, hm?” Professor Lake steamrolled on. “Settle down with a nice family, give me some grandchildren. Like this one.” She bent down to press a kiss to Daisy’s curls.

Across the table, Naomi smiled at him sympathetically. 

“It’s not for everyone, settling down,” she cautioned. “I tried it too soon, with… mixed results.”

“Oh, but your son _is _incredible.”

Naomi raised both hands. “You can thank my parents for that. I had nothing to do with it.”

Latricia gave her a sweet, soft look, and Austin resisted the urge to gag.

Right on cue, Will and Nico came wandering out onto the terrasse. Nico looked slightly red, still straightening his shirt, and Will had to clear his throat.

“Hey everyone, sorry about that, we lost track of time during that… discussion. What are we talking about?”

Nico didn’t say anything, simply taking Daisy from Latricia, who handed her over with a wink. The hero flushed and busied himself with straightening the floral dress she was wearing. Clearly the two children of Hades had very different aesthetics.

“We were just talking about Austin’s girlfriend Adrienne,” his mother informed him. “One of your colleagues, right?”

The healer pulled out a chair for Nico and Daisy before sitting himself and pouring some lemonade. “Oh yeah, she’s great. But I didn’t realize you two were an item?” He shot a quizzical look at Austin.

“Well like I was _saying_, we haven’t really discussed it yet.”

“Austin! Are you just messing around with this girl?”

“Latricia, come on now, he’s young, he’s got time to figure it out,” Naomi interceded. “Let the boy experiment. It’s not everyone who settles down at eighteen. In fact, it can be good to find out what’s out there before you make these irrevocable choices.” 

“Not that there’s anything wrong with settling down when you know what you want,” Latricia soothed when Will shot his own mother a dirty look, linking his fingers with Nico’s.

“But yeah, Adrienne’s cool. Although she did seem disappointed when I mentioned we were having a family get-together with our mothers here. I invited her, but she told me she had a date this evening. Some son of Venus.” Will looked at Austin cautiously.

The son of Apollo stilled. “What.”

Latricia slapped his arm. “There, you see? That’s what happens when you don’t communicate.”

Naomi looked more sympathetic. “Why don’t you call her,” she suggested. “It’s only four. Invite her over.”

Austin paused, thinking, then nodded. When he got up and moved to the quieter kitchen, he saw that his older brother had followed.

“Hey, I’m really sorry if I put my foot in it. I didn’t know.”

The younger son of Apollo shook his head, dialing his phone. “Don’t worry about it. It’s my fault, you couldn’t have known.”

Will nodded and smiled tentatively, turning to leave.

“Oh hey, Will?” Austin held a hand over the receiver as his brother looked back.

“Yeah?”

“If our mothers start dating, I blame you.”

“_What!_”

Smirking at the dumbfounded look on his brother’s face, Austin turned away.

“Hey, Addie, baby. I’m so sorry, I totally forgot…”


End file.
